Lauding Bangladesh’s progress, European Union Ambassador Michael Miller has called for ensuring policy stability after the parliamentary election.

He made the call while speaking to reporters during an event at the JPG Conference Room, UNICEF House, in Dhaka’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar on Wednesday.

UNICEF Bangladesh Representative Rana Flowers and a representative from the Government of Bangladesh attended the event titled “European Union and UNICEF, in partnership with the Government of Bangladesh, are celebrating the achievements of the ‘Fostering Rights and Empowerment of the Most Marginalised Adolescents and Children with Disabilities’ programme (2021–2024).”

Michael Miller said the success of the partnership that the EU has with the Government of Bangladesh and UNICEF in upholding the human rights and dignity of children is crucial, as this work is carried out by the authorities and directly impacts the country’s economic and social development.

“It’s about getting young women, young boys, out of factories into school, into education, skills, into employment, controlling their own resources and future. These are all things that underpin the approach of the European Union to our partnership with your country. So that’s the first message that I want to convey.”

Secondly, he said, this intervention has been extremely positive, as it provides data that can help mobilise resources for Bangladesh to invest in sustainable solutions to the challenges it faces.

“But we are your partners in this respect, so the fact that we are able to invest our support together with the authorities and UNICEF, and that it still has a lasting impact today, is something that fills me with pride. And this is the kind of result I want to see from all of our interventions.”

He said, “In this same context – the last thing I will say – the country is now moving towards elections, so it is very important that the success we see from this type of interventions – there is predictability when it comes to the policies adopted by this country.

“So, regardless of which party or parties win this election or form the next government, we want to see predictability on these issues. The challenges will not change with a new government; they will remain the same.”